Can hypertension cause other problems?When your blood pressure is too high for too long, it damages your blood vessels — and LDL cholesterol begins to accumulate along tears in your artery walls. This increases the workload of your circulatory system while decreasing its efficiency. As a result, high blood pressure puts you at greater risk for the development of life-changing and potentially life-threating conditions.

Understand the symptoms and risks — Learn what factors could make you more likely to develop high blood pressure and determine your risk for serious medical problems.

Make changes that matter — Take steps to reduce your risk and manage blood pressure. Make heart-healthy lifestyle changes, take your medication as prescribed and work in partnership with your doctor.

High blood pressure and hypertensive crisisIn most cases, the damage done by high blood pressure takes place over time. If your blood pressure readings suddenly exceed 180/110 mm Hg, wait five minutes and test again. If your readings are still unusually high, call 9-1-1 immediately — especially if you are experiencing chest pain, shortness of breath, back pain, numbness/weakness, vision changes or difficulty speaking. You could be experiencing a hypertensive crisis.

High blood pressure and metabolic syndrome (insulin resistance syndrome) Metabolic syndrome is a group of risk factors, including high blood pressure, that raises risk of heart disease, diabetes, stroke and other health problems. It is diagnosed when any three of these risk factors are present: